God's Delays

In these 40 days of prayer and fasting that we are in as we do Freeda Bower's "Give Me 40 Days", have you ever felt like giving up ? Have you ever wondered why God is so slow (like the snail) in answering our prayers ? Why is He so slow in showing up ? What is wrong ? Waiting is very hard for most of us and I am also one who wants answers now. I'm stretched by God's delays, wondering why and by when, always asking : "How long more, O Lord ?" If you are in the same predicament, welcome to the club !

These 40 days as we venture into Freeda Bowers' book and discipline ourselves to pray for others and not for our own needs, the Lord has really caused such a shift in my whole attitude towards waiting upon Him in prayer. We often pray and treat God like an ATM where the answers comes out almost instantly ! Our attitude should be like that of the prophet Habakkuk who wanted answers as well. He started off in Habakkuk 1 : 2 by asking : "How long, O LORD, must I call for help, but you do not listen? Or cry out to you, "Violence!" but you do not save?".

However in Chapter 2, Habakkuk's attitude changed even as he declared : "1 I will stand at my watch and station myself on the ramparts; I will look to see what he will say to me, and what answer I am to give to this complaint." "2 Then the LORD replied: "Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it. 3 For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay."

Faith never gives up and despite the long delay, God is still at work because we are sure that as we put our faith in Him, He will come through for us. Madame Guyon wrote : "Each delay is perfectly fine, for we are within the safe hands of God." We are to learn that each delay as if it were "perfectly timed and it will be fine". Postponements are reasons to pray more rather than grow anxious, impatient and angry with God and our situation.

So, take heart and persevere on my friend in these 40 days and beyond. If God's answer tarries, "Wait for it, because it will surely come."God is at work and His timing is always perfect. He makes all things beautiful in His time. Amen !

5 Graces To Live By In Our Urban Lifestyle

Today, at my Bank's Tentmakers' fellowship, I managed to invite Ps. Irvin Rutherford to speak to us and he shared on a very timely and pertinent message on the "5 Graces To Live By In Our Urban Lifestyle". I take this opportunity to share this with you (with expanded inputs from yours truly) and trusts that you will be blessed.

In our hurried and chaotic world, we really need more and more of God's Grace to get us by on a daily basis. All over the world even as we study the lives of great men of God who lived in times of revival, their motto in life has been governed by the elements of these "5 Graces" or at least one of the 5. Incidentally, the Biblical number for Grace is the number 5.

The 5 Graces to live by are :

1. Grace Of Faith

The Bible says in Romans 1 : 17 "For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith." We need the Grace of faith to continue to have faith not on faith but on the Giver of faith i.e. our LORD Jesus Christ. We need to live our lives by faith and not let the pleasures of life, our jobs, our properties be our security. Instead our faith must be built on Jesus' blood and Righteousness. On Christ the solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand.

2. Grace Of Assurance

The hymn "Blessed Assurance" was written by Fanny J. Crosby and composed by Phoebe P. Knapp. The scripture reference is found in Hebrews 10: 22 "Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water."

Frances Jane Crosby (March 24, 1820 - February 12, 1915), known as Fanny Crosby, was an American lyricist and Methodist, best known for writing Protestant Christian hymns. Despite her blindness which she acquired shortly after birth, she was one of the most prolific hymn writers in history, having written over 8,000 hymns. One of the best known women in the US, Crosby was also known for preaching and public speaking. It is amazing that especially for a blind person, someone could write on this variety of spiritual truths and experiences with such proliferation.

"Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!
O what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood."
Chorus:
"This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long;
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long

1 Tim 3 : 13 "Those who have served well gain an excellent standing and great assurance in their faith in Christ Jesus."

In our urban life, we may be too caught up with our own comforts and be stressed by the worries of life. Despite her handicap, Fanny Crosby held on to her "Blessed Assurance" as she knew and she knew that the "best is yet to come" for her and she lived till a ripe old age of 95, praising her Saviour all the day long !

3. Grace Of Humility

In this modern age of Internet and Tele-Evangelists, we have seen how so many Preachers and Pastors starting well in their ministry but when they are blessed they turned arrogant and are puff-up with pride and becomea demi-god.

We must never take any glory but give God all the glory for the great things He has done in our lives. A broken and contrite heart the LORD will not despise. It is easy to be prideful in a modern society when we are greatly blessed and highly favoured, holding positions of high office.

May we be like Paul who wrote in Acts 20 : 19 "I served the Lord with great humility and with tears, although I was severely tested by the plots of the Jews." Pray to our LORD to help us guard our hearts and be filled with the grace of humility to serve Him and the Body of Christ.

4. Grace Of Prayer

In our nation today, we need to pray like never before. Many great men of God get by not by their charisma or theological knowledge but by prayer and fasting. When we work, we work but when we pray, God works. We have a Great High Priest who continuously intercedes for us. Our prayer does the things our hands cannot do. In Philippians 4 : 6, we are urged by the apostle Paul : "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."

5. Grace Of The Fear Of The LORD

Last, but not least we must not lose our reverence for God. God is to take His rightful place and we are to have a reverential fear of the LORD within us to keep our lives in check. In Hebrews 5 : 7 "During the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission".

Even the LORD Jesus, in reverence submitted Himself to do the Father's will and God gave Him the victory over death ! When we reverence God and have this grace of the fear of the LORD, we know our standing in God and gives God the Glory due to Him.

Psalm 84 : 11 "For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly."

Hallelujah for His Grace. Amen !

Lie In Coffin, Rid Of Bad Luck ? Serious-ah ?

Today, I read in bewilderment and with amusement an article in the Star newspaper promoting a movie "The Coffin" which is based on a Thai ancient ritual called Non Loeng Sadorco (which literally means "Lie in Coffin, Rid of Bad luck"). This is based on a Thai practice of giving money to temples to purchase coffins for the poor. The practice evolved when donors wrote down : "I want to transfer the good karma I've accumulated (from buying a coffin) to my loved one who has passed away" on a piece of paper and pasted it on the coffin that they had bought.

This ritual took a bizarre turn when donors lie in the coffin (with its lid shut but not completely) while a group of monks performed the death rites on them as if they were dead. And when the donor rose from the coffin the monk read a chant of new life. Many participants felt as if they were reborn after the ritual - with their bad karma buried behind them. Before any of you readers out there do likewise, may I suggest to you a better way to rid yourself of the past and be reborn.

The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 5 : 17 : " Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!". For the Christian, when he has opened his heart to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour, he is said to be "born again". In the gospel of John, Jesus said to a Pharisee named Nicodemus : " Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, 'You must be born again.' The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."

One of the acts following the acceptance of Jesus as Saviour for the Christian is the act of "water baptism" which is a significant act of obedience depicting our new identity in Jesus Christ. The word baptism comes from the root word "baptiso" which means to be totally submerged in water. This act involves the person entering into the water (declaring that his old life is gone), and then he is submerged in water (a symbol of being buried with Christ) and when he steps out of the water, it represents that he now has newness of life (being resurrected with Christ).

Water baptism is, in essence, a funeral. It is an act of faith in which we testify, both to God and to the world, that the person we were before is dead and buried, and we are raised as a new creation in Christ. This is beautifully illustrated by the following Scripture :

"Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life."- Romans 6:4

My friend, if you are reading this article and have not yet been "born again", may I invite you to say this prayer of faith :

"Lord Jesus, I thank you for your love for me. I confess that I am a sinner and thank you that you died on the cross for my sins.

Lord Jesus, I now invite you into my heart as my Saviour and Lord. I want to be born again and start life anew and have abundant everlasting life.

I pray this in Jesus' most precious Name. Amen"

If you have prayed this prayer, I would love to hear from you and congratulate you. God Bless you and may you be "born again" this way rather than the "coffin ritual" way !

A Foretaste Of Worship In Heaven

Hallelujah ! Hallelujah ! Hallelujah ! to the Lamb of God. Jesus Christ, Lamb of God ! That was the last chorus we sang to close the gathering of nations at my church to worship and give praise to our great God and King. Wow...I just came back from my church's "International Night" where peoples from various nations gathered to celebrate the goodness of God. My Senior Pastor was so overwhelmed by the superb performances and testimonies that he just said : "What else can I say after witnessing such a marvelous display of God's love and goodness ?" and he aptly ended the session by just sharing two points to the migrant workers and aliens in our midst i.e. "God Loves You" and "God Cares for You".

I too was moved to tears by the performances of the Myanmar kids, the Nepalese, the Indonesians, etc and I just cannot wait for the day when all nations of the world will stand before God and give praise to Him. In Revelations 5 :11 - 14, the Apostle John wrote about his vision of the worship of the Lamb of God in Heaven : "Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. 12In a loud voice they sang: "Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!" 13Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing:

"To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!" 14The four living creatures said, "Amen," and the elders fell down and worshiped.

I don't know about you, dear friends, but as for me I am longing for that day to come and together with the Spirit I say : "Maranatha, even so come Lord Jesus !". Hallelujah to the Lamb !

Turn Your Need Into Seeds

In these tumultuous times, where the prices of necessities are escalating at lightning pace, there is a tendency for us to be inward looking in meeting our own needs first. We may turn from being one who likes to help others to one who is selfish to care only for our own immediate needs.

The Word of God admonishes us in Galatians 6 :9 "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers."

In fact during trying times, it is a good time to prove God to be faithful as in Malachi 3 : 10 ...Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. 11 I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit," says the LORD Almighty. 12 "Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land," says the LORD Almighty."

This is the one time where God throws an invitation to us to test him and to see that if we continue to sow seeds into His Kingdom, He who is no Man's debtor, will repay us abundantly for what we have sown into His Kingdom. The Kingdom of God is one of sowing and reaping, and in 2 Corinthians 9 : 6 "Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. 7Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 9As it is written: "He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor; his righteousness endures forever."10Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. 11You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God."

There is a story in the Bible in 1 Kings 17 : 7 - 15 about a poor widow who had only a handful of flour and a little oil but yet sacrificed it to bake a cake for a prophet. "7 Some time later the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land. 8 Then the word of the LORD came to him: 9 "Go at once to Zarephath of Sidon and stay there. I have commanded a widow in that place to supply you with food." 10 So he went to Zarephath. When he came to the town gate, a widow was there gathering sticks. He called to her and asked, "Would you bring me a little water in a jar so I may have a drink?" 11 As she was going to get it, he called, "And bring me, please, a piece of bread."

12 "As surely as the LORD your God lives," she replied, "I don't have any bread—only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat it—and die." 13 Elijah said to her, "Don't be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small cake of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. 14 For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: 'The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the LORD gives rain on the land.' 15 She went away and did as Elijah had told her. So there was food every day for Elijah and for the woman and her family. 16 For the jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the LORD spoken by Elijah."

The widow could have been self seeking first in meeting her own physical needs which she has every right to do so as the handful of flour and the little oil was all that she had. But she turned her need into seeds of faith and because of that was rewarded with a jar of flour that was never used up and a jug of oil that did not run dry.

In difficult times, we are filled with a weight of worries which hang heavy upon us but Proverbs 17 : 22 says : "A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones." Even as we have our own needs to be met, if we convert it to seeds, you will be surprised that in return your own needs will be met. For example, if you need friends (your need) then be friendly (seeds) yourself and seek friends. If you are sick (your need), start praying for others (seeds) and you will find that you may healed already. Dear friends, let us turn our need into seeds. God Bless You !